On July 26, a beautiful, sunny Saturday at Pismo Beach, the Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary (CHNMS) welcomed over 160 visitors to our Get Into Your Sanctuary event!
Tents and tables were set up on the south side of the Pismo Beach Pier Plaza, where guests could explore and learn about the sanctuary in fun and interactive ways. Attendees tested their knowledge at our trivia wheel, picked up informative brochures, and chatted with sanctuary staff—including Research Ecologist Monisha Sugla and Program Analyst Sachiko Lamen—who were on hand to answer questions. The event was also supported by CHNMS California Sea Grant Fellow Liz Hofius, along with three graduate and undergraduate interns.
Visitors had the option to contribute to a community art project, adding their creativity to a growing library of "pixels" that will be used to create a large mosaic artwork representative of the sanctuary and the communities we serve. For those feeling extra energetic, buckets were provided for a DIY beach cleanup, with participants collecting over 20 pounds of trash! This included plastic bottles, bags, cans, and wrappers. Data collected on the number and type of trash collected will be entered into a public database to inform future cleanup and conservation efforts.
Once again, thank you to everyone who joined us and to those who granted us permission to share their photo! And for anyone who was not able to make it this time, we hope to see you at a future event!
Questions? Contact chumash.heritage@noaa.gov